Cursed
by WritingTrash
Summary: Once upon a time there was a monster who fell in love with a princess who saw his humanity. USxFem!UK. AU
1. Bedtimes and Once Upon A Times

**I LOST INTERNET AGAIN! (The first time I'm referring to is the time I used to write When The Day Met The Night) I'm so mad.**

 **Since I can't do too much without eating up my data (I could be cleaning but who wants to do that), I'll write some more fanfiction for my favorite OTP. I'm so obsessed with USxFem!UK, it's sad.**

 **This story was sort of inspired by a tumblr post I can't find and also I kind of tweaked it to fit my needs. I'm not going to tell you about it because I don't feel like ruining the story, but really it's so obvious you'll probably get it after 2 words.**

 **This is going to be 14 chapters long (including a prologue and an epilogue) and I am going to update every Saturday, hopefully I won't be late. I'm also posting the prologue and chapter 1 at the same time since they're short.**

 **These first couple chapters are going to be fairly short, but around 4 or 5 things are going to start heating up.**

 **Update: I actually got internet back within 6 hours after we lost it, but I'll keep writing this in my spare time, I don't have much else to do I'm an unsocial person, obviously.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.**

 _Once upon a time..._

The queen shooed the princess away,"Go get ready for bed!" She commanded softly.

"I don't wanna!" She cried back, she had picked up her father's accent, much to her mother's irritation.

The king smiled at the queen who already looked tired of the coming argument,"If you get to bed quickly we might have time for a story." He added. The little girl's pretty eyes widened happily. The queen rolled her eyes at the two.

"What story?" The princess questioned, curiously.

"Whatever one you want." He answered, smiling at her and messing up her already messy hair. The princess nodded happily then rushed out of the room.

"Why did you have to promise her a story? We will be up half the night telling a story." The queen added once their daughter was gone. The king grinned.

"But all the good ones are the long ones." He responded, helping her up and leading down the hall to the princess's bedroom. "Besides, you know which one she'll ask for." The queen nodded.

They entered to see her adjusting her covers. She looked back up to them,"Story!" She requested strongly as she climbed into bed. The princess crossed her arms and look at them sternly. Well as sternly as a six-year-old could.

Her parents shared an amused glance. The king sat on the bed, making the child bounce slightly and giggle, losing her stern manner. The queen sat in the chair next to the bedside, moving the blankets to cover her. "Which story do you want?" The queen asked her daughter. There were so many to tell after all. The child had already decided and they knew.

The child looked thoughtful anyway, then smiled widely. She had inherited her father's smile as well. The queen enjoyed seeing the two smile. "I want the story of the dragon and the princess."

The king whistled softly,"That's a long one, are you sure?" He teased.

The queen smiled thoughtfully,"I do enjoy that one the most."

"You said _whatever_!" The princess added looking between her parents.

"I guess I did, okay then. Where to begin?" He asked.

"The beginning, I want the _whole_ story! Don't leave anything out." The younger exclaimed.

"Alright," He grinned at her,"Do you want to start?" He asked his wife.

She nodded and smiled," _Once upon a time.._."


	2. Awake and Alone

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.**

 _There was a daughter of a king who had forgotten her name. When faced with a falling empire, he traded her with a witch to save himself and his empire..._

When Alice was fully awake the warm feeling of the kiss was gone. The owner of the unnaturally warm lips that had kissed her and the hand that had been against her cheek was no where to be found.

She sat up, surveying the room. It was empty, snow fell silently outside her window. Had it been winter when she was out to sleep? No- It hadn't.

There was the large bed she had been sleeping in and a wardrobe against the wall with the door. There was several bookshelves full of books and dust and a desk next to the window. Dust covered most of it, Alice supposed she had been sleeping for quite a while, but the exact time was unknown.

That witch had done a good job of dressing her and the room up.

Alice climbed out of the bed, ready to be free of the silky sheets that had trapped her here for however long. She took a second to regain balance and then crossed the room to a mirror near the wardrobe. Her reflection didn't look any different.

 _She shall be sleeping in an eternal state. She shall be guarded by an impenetrable field and a fearsome dragon. She shall only wake of a true love's kiss._

She remembered the curse. No matter how long had passed, her body wouldn't show it. That part was obvious, she still looked the same. Same green eyes, same ash blond hair, same freckles, and same eighteen-year-old she was used to seeing in the mirror. Was she still eighteen? How long had it been since her birthday?

Alice turned to the window, it was cold to the touch. She could see the shield made of magic or something along those lines.

 _If someone should seek her, they must pass the field and defeat the dragon. Only then would they have the chance to see if they are her true love._

So where was he? The field wasn't broken. Alice squinted, but the shield wasn't broken. But she had been woken up. She had been kissed, even if she hadn't even see his face, she knew she had been. There was no other reason for her to be awake. Maybe he was in the tower.

At that thought Alice left her room and started to explore. At first she went down on the winding staircase, finding a kitchen and a storage room with various cleaning things and other generic items and lots of crates. After being disappointed with her discoveries below, Alice started up.

Alice climbed past her room and reached the highest room. She was met with a simple wooden door and pushed it in. Inside was an empty room. Empty other than a pile of shiny items like silverware and coins. There were steps and a large balcony leading out to the roof of the tower. From the door she saw a golden scaled tail that twitched back and forth, from the roof.

Alice gasped and almost fell over her own feet trying to escape. The dragon. How could she have forgotten that important part? There was a dragon guarding her! A real fire-breathing, hoarding, fearsome dragon.

She quickly stepped out of the room, thankfully the dragon was on the roof and hadn't realized she had come in uninvited. Alice shut the wooden door, deciding she was never going to open that door again.

The princess turned back to her bedroom. Alice was still trapped here, there were no doors on the tower and the field still shielded her from the rest of the world.

Alice plopped back onto her bed, but had no intention of sleeping. She would have to live here alone until someone decided to rescue her. The princess glanced back to the window, how ever long that would be.

 **I hope you enjoyed. Please leave a review, follow and favorite!**


	3. Broken Windows and Dragons

**This is so late at night, I'm sorry!  
**

 **Reviews:**

 **Loki: Not sure what that means but thanks for the review.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.**

 _She spent her days alone, other than the dragon..._

Alice couldn't sleep for months. She tried to, but when she closed her eyes she had dreams of her father and of the witch that had left her here.

The princess would clean or read off the bookshelf during the day. The books consisted of topics that didn't really interest here, but it was something to do. She was also fix her clothes with the sewing supplies she had found in the storage room below. The clothes left in the wardrobe were far too showy for her liking, full of sparkles and bows and falling to the floors. Alice would fix them so they were simple and so most would only reached her knees. She used some of the discarded ribbons to put her hair in the normal pigtails she always wore before the tower. That took up her days, she spent her nights wandering the tower since she couldn't sleep.

All this was fine for a little while, but Alice had lost most interest and finished all her dresses. She was on the floor of her room, staring out the window. She guessed it was mid to late December, snow was heavy but Alice had grown up with snow so she didn't mind it much.

There was the presence of the dragon, too. Not that she minded that either. She could hear him move around the roof in the night. When she was younger, while other little princesses were playing with dolls she had been reading. Dragons was a favorite topic of hers, most were scared of them, Alice was too of course. You'd have to be very stupid or very brave to not be scared of dragons. But she was also very intrigued by them.

Alice hadn't ever actually met her dragon, not daring to go to that empty room again, but she was interested to see what species he was. He was probably just a common dragon, like a Forest Wanderer or a Rock Hiker. It was possible he was a Gemstone one, or a Metallic one. Alice didn't want to exactly go up to the room and examine him, despite what species he was, he was a dragon. Dragons were vicious whatever species they were.

Maybe she could see him from a distance. Like the ground. She stopped her train of thought. She could see him from the ground. Alice jumped up from the floor and hurried down the stairs to the lowest room.

The storage room had one window, it was small but Alice was small, too. She could easily fit through it, without the glass. The princess looked around and found a wooden board from a crate she had already opened. She grabbed it and swung as hard as she could, shattering the glass onto the floor. Alice set the board down and looked out to the snowy outside.

The princess took a deep breath and stepped to the window, the glass clinked under her shoes. Ungracefully, Alice climbed through the window and fell into the snow outside. There was a flash of pain, her blood turned the snow red.

She had cut her arm,"Bloody hell!" Alice exclaimed loudly, several other curse words followed. For a princess she did not have a clean vocabulary. She held her arm and stood up, it wasn't that bad, but it did hurt like hell and was much more noticeable against the white snow.

Frost bit at her fingers and face, it was much colder out here than she had thought it to be. The world seemed to be a still white wonderland. There no one for miles it seemed, the only tree inside the field was bare. Alice remembered her goal of coming out here, see the dragon. She started to walk around the tower, the dragon usually sat facing the north. Alice reached the front and the dragon was curled around the roof.

He was a Metallic dragon. His scales were golden, shiny from the sun and standing out against the cold sky. His head was resting on his front feet, wings wrapped around his body for warmth. He must be younger, he was probably only 10 feet tall or so. She had heard stories of the horrific dragons that loomed over buildings. A real live dragon. Alice never would have guessed she would see one with her own eyes. Then he looked at her.

The princess stiffened, gripped her arm tighter and more blood dropped into the snow. He had blue eyes that seemed almost human, odd. He looked more protective rather than scary. She was insane. She was standing out in the open in front of a dragon.

Alice could see her smoky breath in the cold, the dragon watched her silently, tail flicking back and forth. Was he going to attack? Perhaps he didn't see her as the princess he was guarding, just a person who shouldn't be there. He would swoop down and kill her right now. Alice squeezed her eyes closed, preparing for the impact.

She shouldn't be here. She should be inside that tower waiting to be rescued like a good cursed princess. She should still be sleeping. She should be all alone. She should be scared, she should run away.

But she didn't.

Alice wouldn't just wait around crying and dreaming to be rescued. It wasn't in her to be that miserable. She couldn't make herself be that miserable even if she wanted to. And for some strange and stupid reason she wasn't scared. Something told her that the dragon would not attack her. Alice opened her eyes to look back at the dragon.

She was right. He turned away, looking bored of watching her. Alice let out the breath she was holding, slouching some and looking to the snow that was dotted with her blood. Alice glanced back up to the dragon, silently staring into the distance.

She climbed back into her window, clearing out all the glass first. The princess bandaged her arm and swept up the glass. Alice could feel the winter winds from the outside world, but the warmth of the tower blocked a lot of it out. She wasn't sure why the tower was so warm, there wasn't anything that would cause it. It was unnaturally warm.

Alice returned to her room, laying on the bed that she couldn't bring herself to sleep in. There was the creaking of the dragon moving around above her. The sounds stopped and she was left in silence once again.


	4. Storms and Nightmares

**Human Names:**

 **Scotland: Allistor Kirkland**

 **Ireland: Adler Kirkland**

 **Wales: Aeron Kirkland**

 **They're a little weird, I looked up fanon names but then like 3 were A names and I decided I wanted to do all A names so I had to scroll through Irish and Welish names for a bit to find some I liked. Also heres some backstory!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.**

 _Winter turned to spring and it brought storms and nightmares to her tower..._

It had been months since Alice had woken up to no one. The snow had cleared away, bringing greener grass and soft breezes. It was quite peaceful but also lonely. Her tower yard, that's what she called the small outside area between the tower and the shield, was starting to bloom. The lone tree was full of leaves and there were wildflowers every few steps. There was rain every once in a while, recently the storms had gotten worse.

Alice had a new routine. Everyday that the weather was nice she would climb out of her window to the outside. She had made the window bigger and made sure all of the glass was gone after she cut herself a second time. She had also found that several of the books on her shelves were blank. The princess often brought one of the empty books and a quill out with her.

The dragon was always out there, too. The first couple times he would watch her the whole time, making Alice tense even though she was sure he wouldn't hurt her. After that he eventually stopped paying any attention to her, only glanced back to her to see if she was still there. Even if he didn't look at her all Alice knew that he knew she was there.

The princess would sit against the lone tree and draw sketches of the dragon. Alice was definitely not a amazing artist, but the rough sketches were good enough for her. She would write down little things she noticed. How his tail always twitched. How sad he looked.

Alice had noticed his expression recently. He appeared to be a golden statue, rarely moving anymore other to look toward her. She walked around to see his face.

His head was resting on his front feet almost like a lone dog rather than a fearsome dragon. His eyes glanced down at her but quickly looked away, back to the sky. His eyes were the same shade as the sky, she hadn't noticed that before.

There was no smoke from his breath, she had thought that dragons breathed fire but perhaps not all of them did. He payed little attention to her, almost like he was scared to look at her.

A fat water droplet fell on her head, she jumped and realized she had zoned out staring at the dragon. Another fell on her arm. Alice wiped away the water looked back to dragon. He made no movement to return inside, only curling up tighter. She doubted that would be enough to withstand the coming storm. The princess glanced at the dark sky, minutes ago it had been blue. Alice decided it was best to leave the dragon alone and return to her tower. She took one last glance, and left.

By the time she had reached her window she was already covered in spotty water droplets. The rain was starting to pick up. She was changing into a dry dress when the first clash of thunder startled her. Alice looked back toward her window, it was starting to pour now, lightning flashed in the distance. She pulled on her dress and got closer to the window, leaning on the windowsill.

This was the hardest rain she had seen since her time in the tower, rain beat against the glass, struggling to break in. While it was cold and wet outside, the tower kept her warm and dry. Alice played with one of her pigtails, rain always left her uneasy, it reminded her of the night she was traded.

 _It was pouring down rain outside the castle she had grown up in. The thunder echoed in the large empty halls and the lightning flashed in the windows, lighting a whole room. The whole castle seemed to shake at each raindrop._

 _Alice walked silently, the halls were bare, no one was out in this weather. The princess reached her father's study. The large wooden door stood taller than her. Intricate designs centuries older than her were carved into the dark wood. She could remember years of sitting outside the door. Desperate for attention. Desperate for love. Desperate for a father._

 _She wasn't as naive as she was before, after eighteen years of being ignored. Fathers payed attention to you. They loved you and played with you and they didn't shut you out. They didn't forget about you._

 _That man was not a father. Not to her anyway._

 _He was a father to his empire. He loved that empire, creating it from the dirt and the blood of others. He thrived in the art of war not love. He left for months, exploring far away lands and fighting for more. But all empires fell eventually._

 _He lost more wars than he won. He lost land and money and people. He had shut himself away. Shutting out the world, trying to save his empire from its own doom. The princess had always been shut out so it was no different to her really._

 _She spent her meals alone, he had long ago stopped paying for a nanny. Not that Alice even like those nannies, they were only her friend for money, they wasn't real. Alice would spend her days reading or wandering the castle that she already knew so well. She sometimes would return to the study door, wishing just a little that it would open for her._

 _Today was her eighteenth birthday, but he hadn't actually cared about her last seventeen birthdays._

 _Alice stared at the door, remembering when she would spend her days tracing the carvings. She tried the brass handle and to her utter shock it opened. Usually it was locked to the outside. The princess opened it slowly, only wide enough for her to see inside._

 _She could see two people facing away from her. One of them she recognized as her father, the other was a woman. She had long platinum blonde hair that fell to her thighs and a purple dress that didn't have a straight end, it just sort of faded away at her feet._

 _"Your empire is falling, King." The woman said in a soft but sick voice. Her pale spider like hands moved with a ghostly manner._

 _"I do not need anything from you, witch." Her father hissed. A witch? Why was her father messing around with a witch? They were dangerous and couldn't be trusted, he couldn't be that stupid._

 _"Not even if I can save your empire?" She purred, her hand rested on her father's chair. Alice knew his answer already._

"What do you mean, witch?" She leaned down to his ear.

 _"I can save you and your empire, but you must trade something in return." The witch whispered, yet just loud enough for the princess_ _to hear._

 _Alice clinched the doorknob tighter, this was risky, but she knew he would trade anything for his empire, especially now. She stood up again, taking a stroll around the study. Books were neatly in their places on the shelf, the only messy thing was the desk her father was sitting at._

 _"Today is your daughter's birthday, isn't it?" She asked causally, brushing her fingers across the spines of books._

 _"Maybe." He said, he didn't even know._

 _"And what happened to the rest of your family? You have no queen and no sons." She hummed._

 _"The queen died giving birth to Alice, but you know what happened to my sons." He answered. So he did know her name after all._

 _She knew the story of her mother. People said that she brought the life out of her father. They said she had been beautiful and caring yet could handle a fight and knew how to run her kingdom. They said Alice was just like her, but she'd never know if that was true or just an empty complement. She knew they blamed her for killing her. When her father did notice her existence he would shout and scream. He'd say it was her fault. It was her fault,_ _Alice wouldn't pretend that wasn't true._

 _Alice had three older brothers. Allistor was the oldest, he would've been twenty-five this year, if he had lived that long. When Allistor had been fourteen there had been some accident, a week after that he was announced dead. She had only been seven at the time, she never was able to hear the whole story. By now barely anyone risked mentioning him._

 _Her next oldest brother was named Adler, he was four years older than her and would've been twenty-two. The story was that Alder had fallen ill, the same sickness that had a part in_ _her mother's death. Two years after Allistor, Adler died at thirteen._

 _Her last brother, Aeron, was only a year older than her. They were a little closer than the others, Allistor had teased them all and Adler had followed along. After the deaths of their other siblings Alice and Aeron became closer, usually they were each other's only company. One night, a year after Adler's death, when she was ten and Aeron was eleven, someone broke into the castle. They had intended to find her father, but instead they reached Aeron first. They killed her last brother, leaving_ _her alone._

 _"Ah, yes. The oldest one gave you the North, the middle one gave you the East, and the youngest one gave you the South. How could I have forgotten?" Alice felt her stomach drop. No. She heard her wrong, he couldn't have._

 _But he did. He traded his sons for his empire._

 _Had he traded_ _her mother, too? Alice didn't want to believe it. She wanted to run back to her room and forget but something made her stay._

 _"Are they all dead?" He asked, Alice looked at him in surprise, did he care if they were?_

 _"The older one is, he didn't listen well and I had to show some discipline for the others. The other two are my servants, the younger one is close to insanity, but as long as he can pour tea I could care less, hm?" She smiled like this was a game,"I would like to complete the set."_

 _Alice watched the scene neither looked to her but she could see half their faces. She silently begged her father to care, he couldn't. The princess could feel tears threatening to fall._

 _"What is your trade?" He asked._

 _"She will be entertainment, I have no need for more servants. She shall be sleeping in an eternal state. She will be guarded by an impenetrable field and a fearsome dragon. She shall only wake of a true love's kiss, something you have not given. If someone should seek her, they must pass the field and defeat the dragon. Only then would they have the chance to see if they are her true love. If you agree to this trade I will get your daughter and_ _you will get your empire." The witch said, her cold purple eyes flickered to Alice. She knew_ _she was there, she knew the whole time._

 _The princess started to run, leaving the study and the door, just hearing the words,"She's yours." But there was no escape._

Alice woke up to another thunder clash. Recently she had been able to sleep some, but it always ending up in nightmares. Lightning lit up the room. She had fallen asleep on the floor under the windowsill. She had ended up crying at some point, hugging herself tightly.

It was still dark and the rain was still beating against the wall she was leaning against. It was probably around two or three in the morning. Thunder shook the tower and lightning would light up the world around it. Alice became as small as she could, silently crying.

She wished for the rain to stop. She wished Adler and Aeron weren't that witch's servants. She wished her mother and Allistor weren't dead. She wished her father hadn't traded his whole family for a empire. She wished he had loved them. She wished she hadn't been traded away like property. She wished she wasn't trapped in a tower with a dragon. She wished she wasn't alone in this storm.

 **Guys this was almost 2000 words! That's longer than the first two combined. Okay anyway, please follow, favorite, and review!**


	5. Fallen Trees and Scarlet Blood

**I've been listening to Once Upon A Dream by Lana Del Ray while writing this, it reminds me of the story some. Maybe not, I just like it though. Anyway here:**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.**

 _The dragon had defended her tower from the dangerous lightning while she had dreamed inside..._

By the time it was dawn Alice was awake and had cried herself into silence. For a while she laid on the floor, staring at the ceiling. The tower seemed colder and quieter than usual. The rain had slacked off into a thin drizzle.

Alice suddenly remembered the dragon. Yesterday after the rain had started he had still been on the roof. She hadn't heard him move. His movements made everything creak in her tower. The Princess sat up. That rain couldn't have been good for him. Plus there had been so much lightning. He was a Golden Metallic Dragon, since he was a metallic species, he had a naturally higher level of metal in his body. Metal attracts lightning, especially at a high point, he must've been struck.

The princess quickly got up and saw the view outside her window. She could see the lone tree in the tower yard from her window. The tree usually stood as tall as the tower. But now it's trunk was broken in half, she was probably as tall as it now. The bottom was splintered and charred, it must have been hit by lightning. The rest of the tree had fallen to the side of the tower fortunately. If it had fallen straight ahead it would've hit the tower, directly her room and probably killed her. The more surprising thing was the golden form curled up on the grass. The dragon.

Alice practically ran down to the broken window and climbed through, tripping over her own feet several times on the way down. She ran once she was outside but suddenly stopped only steps away. This was the closest she had ever seen him. This was the closest she had ever been to a dragon. He was curled up like a big golden snake. His wings were pressing close to his back, and his face was buried under his tail that was still for the first time.

She noticed the large red stain against his scales. He was hurt. Odd, she thought dragons bled blue perhaps she was wrong. Could he be dead?

The princess was silent as she watched nervously, then she turned back. She climbed back inside her tower and started to dig through the storage room, looking for some medical things. Alice found the remains of the bandages she had used for herself the last time she burnt herself trying to cook something other than the canned food from the storage room. She also found some other helpful things. The princess ran upstairs and found a bag, stuffed the medical supplies, a book she used for sketches and notes, a quill, and a kitchen knife.

Alice was a little slower returning to the storage room. What was she doing? Going to fix a dragon? She knew very little about medicine and dragon health. If she even touched him she might be burnt with his breath. Again there was that strong thought that he wouldn't hurt her. Oh she was so stupid, but she climbed out the window anyway.

Alice returned to the dragon, he hadn't moved, still curled up in a tight ball. She stood several steps away, but still much closer than she should. The ground below her feet sloshed as she walked, full of water from the storm. Some dragons understood human tongue, maybe he did. She took a deep breath and cleared her throat.

His ear perked, he lifted his head slightly, seeing her. They stared for a moment, then in an instant the dragon fumbled away. He jumped up and limped away quickly. This was the most she had ever seen him move. He seemed to trip over his own paws and tail and was very uncoordinated.

"Wait! Hey!" She exclaimed, hurrying after him.

He tried the fly back to his roof but got as high as the first window before falling back to the ground. His wound had been near his left wing, she doubted he could fly well. Alice approached him again,"I don't want to hurt you, alright?"

He seemed to want to be far away from her, he seemed almost frightened. That was stupid, he was much more threatening. The dragon watched her every move with big blue eyes that seemed so human. "I- um- I've read about uh- dragons before. Some of you can uh understand humans." There was no change in his manner."Do you, _understand_ me?"

The golden dragon watched her still then tilted his head,"Was that a yes?" Alice smiled, no other responses. "How about you use your tail- if that's okay? Left for yes and right for no. Do you understand?" His tail flicked to the left once. She was talking to a real dragon, Alice smiled imagining the stories she could tell if she ever got out of here.

She set her bag down softly,"I noticed you were hurt, I can try to patch you up, if you want me to."

 _Yes._

Alice dug through it and pulled out some things that would make sense. The princess then turned back to him. He still looked tense, almost scared. She slowly walked toward him, there were no changes in him. She passed his head and reached the wound. Alice heard movement and jumped around to defend herself only to see his tail move closer to her so she could see his response. The princess sighed and looked back to him.

The thick blood shaded his scales, she could see what looked like a stab wound close to his wing. Some body part like a shoulder. "This might sting, I'm sorry if it does."

Alice guessed it did sting because the second she touched him he jumped. She also notice how warm he was, but for a fire breathing dragons she couldn't expect much else. "Sorry." She mumbled. For the next long while she worked to clean away his blood and bandage his injury tight enough to hold. He would flinch from the medicine and adjust his position, making her have to backtrack several times.

Before she had been traded and growing up in the castle Alice did enjoy to go watch the doctors fix up the soldiers who came home hurt. She picked up simple things and if she had the opportunity to do anything with her life she would've probably been a nurse of some kind. Not in her kingdom though, the soldiers would marvel at her rather than listen.

The princess backed away from him and admired her handy work. It was sloppy and blood was starting seep through already. "Well it's not the best. It this is my first time being a dragon doctor."

He looked to the bandage that stood out against his golden body and then looked back to her. The dragon then stood and stretched his wings,"Oi! Wait!" Alice cried, he listened and looked down to her. "You can't fly, you'll open the wound again."

The dragon watched her, Alice took in a shaky breath, they were only an arm lengths away. His blue eyes looked worried, if that was possible. "I suppose you're stuck down here with me for a while?" She smiled nervously, he laid down again, one flick to the left.

 _Yes._

"I'm going to go inside, I'll be back later." Alice grabbed her things and rushed back inside her tower. The princess let out another breath and dropped her bag on the floor. Part of it was stained red. She had talked to a dragon, she had touched a dragon. She was still alive after all that.

The princess returned upstairs to the kitchen. It must be noon already and she hasn't even eaten anything. There was not much to offer to eat in the tower. The storage room had some crates filled with lots of cans, peas, corn, beans, soup. But still these weren't luscious options. She was used to warm three course meals with every option available. While Alice wasn't asking for a whole team of chefs inside her tower, something other than cold green beans would've been nice.

Because of the lesser meals Alice had lost some weight too, she wasn't unhealthy thin, but still more that before. Not that she had thought that possible, her brothers had always teased her for being small and many seamstresses had complained about her size.

The princess decided on a cold meal of red beans that she found in a cabinet. Alice then returned to her bedroom where she had a view of the dragon. He laid in the same spot she had left him in.

That bandage really did look messy. Alice sighed. His tail was twitching again.

 _Yes._

 _No._

 _Yes._

 _No._


	6. Men and Silence

**I'm so excited to write this one, enjoy!**

 **Reviews:**

 **Clairol:**

 **I found another USxFem!UK fan! I love this ship so much, I'm glad you do, too! And you like my writings?! Wow! Thanks so much! I really write these stories for me when I'm bored, I'm always surprised when people like them. Thank you so much for reading!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.**

 _When she returned there was a man in the dragon's place..._

After she finished her cold brunch of some slightly stale bagels, Alice returned to the dragon to find him asleep. He made no made no movement to acknowledge her, even when she said something. She didn't mind, after what he'd been through in the storm, she was just glad he was okay.

The princess decided that she shouldn't try to wake him, partly for her safety. Alice sat against the charred tree stump and doodled another picture of him. It was still quite fascinating to be this close to a dragon. Was she the only person in the world who knew a dragon like this? Eventually the sun tucked behind the horizon and the princess returned to her tower.

The tower was colder than she was used to. There was an odd silence. No creaking of the roof, barely a wind. Alice rolled around in the bed for hours. Watching the moonlight and shadows create pictures on her wall. She tried to sleep but the dark brought bad memories. At about 4:00 in the morning the princess ended up reading by the moonlight, abandoning the idea of sleep.

A little after dawn she decided to return to the dragon. Alice glanced outside again as she was packing her back. But there wasn't a dragon outside. She dropped her bag and rushed to the window.

No dragon. No sounds of him on the roof. There seemed to be the shape of something else where she had left the dragon but she couldn't tell what it was from this height. She grabbed her half packed bag from yesterday, not bothering to add anything else and ran to the storage room.

Alice climbed to the outside and hurried to the splintered tree trunk. The princess tossed her bag on the roots of the dead tree and started to the shape she had seen. She stopped. Then she returned to her bag and grabbed the kitchen knife she had grabbed the previous day. Strange how she had thought to use it now instead of with the dragon.

Alice took slow steps, gripping the knife tightly and nervously. There was a man. The shape had been a man.

Alice crouched in the grass close to his face, still holding her knife. He was not much older than her, she guessed the same age. He had golden blond hair that fell messily with one piece that was out of place and tan skin. He was fast asleep so she couldn't see his eyes. He was sort of curled up, and his breaths were shaky. His eyebrows were furrowed like he was experiencing a nightmare.

Alice didn't wake him.

How had he even gotten here? She sat against the remains of the tree, many steps away from him but still watching wearily. It had been about an hour and a half. Alice was hungry because she had once again forgotten to eat something in her hurry.

She didn't dare to leave him. Even just to satisfy her stomach. Blood was starting to stain his white dress shirt. The princess did not make any move to help.

She was extremely confused and even more frightened. How could she be more scared of some teenager than a dragon? Why was the shield still there when someone had obviously gotten through? How had he gotten to her? Why was he injured in his shoulder? Where the hell was the dragon?

The dragon was gone. Perhaps flew away in the night. Maybe he could get through the shield the whole time. Maybe he didn't care about defending her anymore.

She didn't care, she said, but really she did.

Even if he didn't even talk to her, the dragon had been her only companion in this stupid tower. Even if that dragon could've killed her. Alice huffed in irritation and rested her head against burnt bark.

Why was she sitting here guarding some unconscious man? Who was he?

He barely moved. Only flinching in his sleep and curling tighter together. His breath was unsteady. For whole minutes his breathing became so soft she thought he was dead. He was hurt badly. His shirt was stained red with blood and Alice forced herself to not come any closer. Was he dying?

Death was an odd thing for her. She had caused it but never seen it. Her mother had died because of her, but Alice hadn't seen it. She didn't even remember it.

The princess didn't leave, for some reason she couldn't. He seemed almost familiar. Something out of a dream almost. But all her dreams had been nightmares.

Did the witch send him? To check up on her and make sure she was still fast asleep.

He shakily sleep for hours. She told the time using the shadow of a wildflower. She played with her hair and doodled pictures but not of him. She tried to read but couldn't read more than a sentence before getting distracted watching him. He was quite handsome, the princess had to admit that much at least.

His dreams seemed horrible from how he reacted. He would be still for half an hour before flinching violently. Several times she thought he was dead. His breaths would become very fast or very hard or very slow or very soft.

It would've been boring to most. Sitting there for hours just watching him sleep. Alice had nothing else to do, and she couldn't make herself leave anyway.

The princess was watching a breeze twist a purple blossom when there was another movement. She returned her gaze to him, his hand moved to his face. He rubbed his cheek, then reached to his shoulder and touched the scarlet stain. He brought his blood stained hand to his face again and opened his eyes.

Blue.


	7. Blue Eyes and Curses

**Hey maybe the main characters will get some dialogue. I'd like to add Alice's first words in this were "Bloody hell!" I feel that fits her personality and defines her character.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.**

 _He flew away, hiding away in his tower..._

Blue.

That's what color his eyes were. Not any blue. The kind you could get lost in. Blue like the sky. Blue like the dragon's.

He saw her and gasped, something strange in his eyes, almost fear. She stared back to him, hoping she didn't look as scared as she felt. In an instant he ungracefully fumbled to his feet and ran. He stumbled, after loosing how ever much blood. He was running. He must not be very smart. Alice jumped up and ran after him. "Oi! Where the hell are you going?!" She shouted after him. He ran around the tower, almost falling on his face. She couldn't help smiling.

Alice turned the corner and froze. The dragon was flying up to the highest room. The dragon's bandage was dark red and torn. But he was flying anyway. Alice glanced around but the man wasn't there. She looked back to the dragon. He had reached the balcony that lead to the room and the roof. Then the dragon collapsed on the balcony and the form of the dragon she could see from there was gone. Like he shrunk or something.

Alice ran to the window, not caring about her abandoned bag left at the tree stump. She ran up the spiral stairs to the wooden door of the highest room.

The princess knocked. There was no movement, just silence. "I know it's you in there." Alice said. To who? She didn't know. The dragon? The man?

"I'm going to come in." Alice called. Again no response. The door opened for her. The princess walked into the room, it hadn't changed much since the last time she had been there. Still empty but that stack of shiny items. And the man.

He was sitting against the doorway to the balcony with his face hidden. His fists were clinched and his body was tense. Then he relaxed slightly with a desperate sigh. He rested his head on his arms, staring off into the sky. "Who are you?" She asked, but part of her already knew the answer.

"I'm the dragon." He answered quietly.

Alice looked him over again despite spending the whole day watching him. "How?" She inched closer.

"I got cursed by the same witch who put you in here." He still didn't look at her.

Another question popped in her mind. It was the only thing that made sense. "Did you kiss me?" Alice was standing a step away.

"Yes." They were quiet. Alice wasn't sure what to say. She had thought maybe the curse had a loop hole or maybe she just dreamed him or- Just something other than this. She had spent hours thinking of a prince to come get her. While she was not their damsel in distress, Alice couldn't help to wish to fall in love. Everybody wanted to fall in love at some point, didn't they?

It seemed simple. You loved someone, or you didn't. You dreamed about them and they occupied your thoughts. They said I love you and you said it back, they cared and they didn't leave. Maybe she wanted to be in love so badly because she was sure no one had ever really loved her. She never had the chance before. She never really had the chance to love anyone.

"I know I shouldn't have. I didn't think you'd wake up. I just couldn't watch you sleep anymore. You didn't deserve to be cursed to an eternity of that. I thought I could do something..." He explained. Alice looked to her feet.

"Did you love me?" Did she even want to the answer?

"Yes."

"Why?"

"I don't know. I guess after two years of being trapped here with someone you fall in love." He still hadn't looked to her. Like he was scared to see her.

Two years? She was sleeping for two years? "Two years?"

"Mhm." More silence. But there really wasn't anything left to say.

She was supposed to be rescued by a prince who'd wake her up and they'd fall in love. As much as she hated it to be that cliche, that's what happened. What was supposed after all. She wasn't supposed to be woken by the dragon. He wasn't supposed to love her. This isn't what was supposed to happened.

The princess sat down across from him. "Why were you cursed?"

"Why do you care?" He whispered, sounding genuinely curious.

"I want to know, I'm sure you know why I was cursed." Alice returned.

"When I was seven I was playing around too close to the witch's house. She caught me and cursed me. Now for twelve hours out of the day I have to be a dragon and for the other twelve I have to be human." He answered.

"That's horrible." She whispered, his curse made hers sound like heaven.

"I'm sorry." He said, finally looking at her. Alice glanced up, blue met green.

"For what?" She returned.

He smiled sadly. She bet his smiles could light up the world, even the sad ones. "Didn't your parents even tell you any fairytales? It's not supposed to end up this way."

"My mother is dead and my father is the reason I'm here, so please enlighten me." Alice smoothed her dress and allowed her gaze to return to him.

He looked surprised. "I mean- uh-" Alice raised an eyebrow in amusement. "The princess is supposed to be woken up by the prince, not the monster." He trailed off.

"You're not the monster," Alice tried to reassure him,"and I don't think I am the sort of princess that belongs in a fairytale."

"I'm a dragon-human shapeshifter, how am I not the monster?" He retorted harshly, glaring at the ground.

Alice looked him over once again. Monsters were wicked. They were cruel and ugly and horrible. They were fearsome. The man sitting across from her was not a monster. They had barely really known each other for longer than a day, but she knew. He wasn't a monster. "I'm not sure, but I know you're not."

He frowned at her answer and turned away, shutting his eyes. She stood,"Get up." The princess commanded.

He looked back to her in confusion, Alice offered her hand. He hesitated, watching her hand and her face. Eventually he took her hand and she pulled him up slightly but really he was too heavy for her. He stood and she didn't release his hand and they locked eyes. He was about half a head taller than her and he was unnaturally warm.

"Why are you doing this? Why aren't you shutting me away like everyone else?" He asked, Alice liked him being this close.

"I believe we've both been alone for too long. I'll patch you up again," she paused.

"Alfred. Alfred Jones." He squeezed her hand some.

"Princess Alice Kirkland." She smiled back.


	8. I Love Yous and Late Nights

**Happy New Year everybody! Hopefully 2017 will be a little better than 2016. I'd say 2016 was my writing year, I did a lot of binge writing. Anyway here:**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.**

 _They were no longer alone..._

"I love you."

They were simple words really, but she didn't know anything else that held more underlying meaning. Alice would've loved to hear her dragon tell her those words.

After she had finally figured out who her mysterious waker was, they had begun to spend much more time together. Part of that was that Alfred was still hurt and grounded for quite a while and there wasn't exactly anyone else to talk to. Alice had also told him he couldn't sit on the roof until he was better. He slept in the highest room, coming down for breakfast every morning. They told stories of their childhoods and their lives before all of this and before their curses.

She learned that Alfred came from the poorer villages of the western country, explaining his odd speech patterns and accent. He had a twin brother named Matthew. After he had been cursed, Alfred had tried to live normally. He went to the village's tutor with the other children, then he went home and spent his nights as a dragon. This was all fine until he accidentally changed into a dragon during the day in class. His village had stories of the dragons from the nearby mountains and Alfred was immediately feared.

After that, everyone was scared of him, and if they weren't, they were mean to him. When Alfred turned fifteen, he left his village and began traveling around, making sure to not linger in any place for too long. Then the witch found him again and he was trapped here with her.

Months had passed since their meet and they were each other's only companions. That didn't mean she just tolerated him because he was the only one there. She did tolerate some things, Alfred was loud and slightly obnoxious. He hated her cooking and teased her. But she honestly didn't mind.

Most times she loved for him to be around. Alice was scared of him to leave again. Not really leave, but to shut her out. That's why she hadn't told him.

It was early winter, the first snowfall had been a week ago. Alice was sitting outside reading a book while her dragon was curled up sleeping next to her. His golden tail twitched slightly, his sleep still was troubled much like hers was. Despite the frost nipping at her fingers and nose, Alice wasn't cold. Alfred kept her warm even if they weren't touching.

Alfred was mostly healed. He had a scar and still had a little trouble with some things, but he was fine. He could fly away if he wanted to. That was her fear. Her dragon would fly away and forget about her. He'd forget about loving her.

Love.

Alfred hadn't mentioned the feeling since the time she asked. She didn't know if he still did love her. Alice was scared to ask again. Everyone else had said no when she asked. She didn't want that from him. Alice was better off not knowing. Actually not really, but she told herself she was.

The princess leaned her head on the charred wood. It was long past dead by now, but served as a good spot to read. Reading was the least of her concerns right now.

Love. Why did it have to be so goddamn hard?

Alice had long ago realized she loved him. Maybe it had always been there, since she felt him kiss her with his unnatural warmth. Maybe it was a recent thing, since he had gotten hurt protecting her. She had no idea of either. But she knew she loved him.

Him with his beautiful blue eyes and big smile. Him with his need to protect her and defend her. Him with his teasing and loudness. Just him. He was her dragon, and she was his princess after all.

But she didn't know if he felt the same way. When she woke up, that had been so long ago. A million things had changed since then. Perhaps they were just friends now. Just companions. Just trapped together.

Did he even know she was tearing herself apart over him? Did he even care? Alice watched the golden dragon, he seemed too happy. He had probably been in love before. He came from a nice family, a normal village. But she didn't know what to do or say or anything. The princess had never been in love before.

She used her foot to throw some snow on his head. He jumped up and looked confused. Then his eyes flickered to her, Alice smirked at him. He glared and laid down again. The princess sighed and looked to the pages of the book, but she could focus on the words without thinking of him again.

Alice looked up to see her dragon gone. Panic filled her but cold quickly replaced that. A snowball dropped on her hair from above. The princess tensed and looked up to Alfred. He was human and grinning above her.

Not ready for him to get the last hit, Alice grabbed an handful of snow and threw it at his face. He blinked as it hit him and it wiped that grin off his face. "That wasn't fair!" He cried, wiping the whiteness from his cheeks.

"All's fair in love and war." Alice returned, she had heard her father say that once. More of love than war in her case.

She threw another handful at him but he blocked this time and tackled her into the cold. Really she wasn't cold with him. They rolled around and she struggled slightly but enjoyed his closeness. Sometimes he seemed scared to touch her, she enjoyed the times he got too lost in the moment to be scared. Alice ended up getting more snow than Alfred.

The two stopped fighting eventually, laying side by side. Their clothes and hair were wet with slosh but they didn't care. They were inches apart, but she could feel the warmth from his skin.

Alice looked at him, he stared at the sky beyond the shield. "We should go back inside, and clean up." She mentioned after a moment of admiring him.

Alfred looked to her,"Okay." He stood and helped her up. The two returned inside and went their separate ways to change. They met again to argue over dinner then bid each other goodnight.

Alice laid in the bed, curled up in the covers that didn't even come close to warming her like he did. She had started to sleep more, but the nightmares were just as constant as they were before.

 _"IT'S YOUR FAULT." He shouted at her. Somehow she was back in the throne room. Alice was ten and her brothers were gone._

 _"F-for what?" She could barely get out the words between her tears._

 _"FOR KILLING THEM! YOU! YOU KILLED THEM!" The king almost shirked at his remaining child._

 _"I d-didn't-,"She cried,"I-I didn't!" She tried to get close to him but he shoved her to the ground. Pain flashed in her skull as she hit the hard cold floor._

 _"YOU KILLED HER! YOU KILLED THEM ALL! ITS ALL YOUR FAULT! YOU DESERVE TO BE ALONE FOR_

 _YOUR SINS!" The king screamed. Another one of his violent rages, she recalled. Alice could count the times her father had freaked out in front of her, she had scars from each time._

 _Tears fell down her face as she reached toward the back of her head and felt sticky hairs. Alice looked back to her fingers and they were scarlet. She was still on the floor as her father screamed at her. Her face was smeared with tears and blood and she could barely see. The world around her was fading, all except his yells. All except her thoughts._

 _I didn't. I didn't. I didn't. I didn't. I didn't. I didn't._

"I didn't!" She shouted, struggling with her covers and returned to her bed in her tower. Tears were streaming down her face. The princess wiped her eyes and still struggled to calm down. Alice buried her face in the covers, her head pounding painfully and echoing him. She killed them.

"Alice?!" She heard a voice. The princess jumped and looked up, not sure really of who it was. Alfred was standing at the door, looking sleepy-eyed himself. More tears fell and Alice threw off her covers and ran across the room to him.

She hugged his warm body tightly so she never had to let go. He was tense for a moment, unsure of her. Eventually he relaxed and hugged her back. He eased her to the ground. He was sitting crisscrossed against the door and she was in his lap. They sat there for a while, holding each other tightly. Alfred had buried his face in her hair that wasn't scarlet. She had long since healed since that.

"What happened?" He whispered so only she could hear him.

Alice hugged him closer, turning her head so she could see the left part of her room but still resting her head against his chest. "Things. A long time ago." She answered. She could hear his heart, it was beating fast.

"A nightmare?" Alfred asked.

"Yes." Alice watched the bare wall.

"Anything I can do?"

The princess hesitated, but answered the one thing she needed from him. "Love me."

He squeezed her softly and she felt him smile,"I already do."

She smiled softly, tears still falling, torn herself up for nothing it seemed."I love you."

"I've loved you since we met." Alfred whispered.

Then the princess fell asleep in her dragon's arms.


	9. Real Kisses and Years

**A bunch of people said that the last chapter was cute, so I'm glad you all enjoyed it. I went to a comic con reacentlh and I got USUK keychains, I cosplayed as Belarus because she's cool too, it was a lot of fun, anyway, here:**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.**

 _Years passed in their tower, no one came to rescue her..._

When Alice awoke the next day it was surprising calm. Calm as in she didn't wake up screaming and crying. The last time that it had been calm, Alice had still lived in that gloomy castle. She remembered the events of the previous night. The dream and the tears and the dragon.

And there was the fact she was still cradled in his arms on the floor, leaning against the door. Alfred was still human, but she bet he was nearing the end his twelve hours. He hadn't left, that was comforting. Alice smiled barely and buried her face closer to him. He was fast asleep, he had probably fallen asleep after she had calmed down enough.

The tower was silent, she guessed it was late morning. She focused on his breathing, resting her head on his chest. The princess was comfortable and wouldn't mind it they never moved.

A little while later Alfred began to stir, him just adjusting his position caused her to be tossed around a lot. "Hey." He mumbled sleepily after he had woken up some. "You still okay?"

"Yes." She returned,"You stayed human the whole night?"

"Mhm." She stood and he followed, yawning and stretching.

"Why?" Alice sat on the bed again.

Alfred looked back to her, he had been looking to the snowy winter world outside,"I don't know, I guess so you wouldn't be scared if you woke up with a dragon sleeping next to you." His eyes flickered around but not toward her at all.

Alice frowned, as long as it was him she didn't mind what version he was. "I wouldn't have been. You're still you, whether you are a human or you are a dragon." She responded then hesitated slightly before the next line,"I still love you either way." The princess lowered her voice.

He looked shocked, widened eyes at her words. A moment later he smiled with that big goofy smile of his. "I love you, too."

They ate breakfast outside, neither cold despite the weather. Her dragon was curled up next to her, not asleep, more of just watching. She read a new book she had found in a crate in the storage room.

"Alfred?" The princess questioned. He lifted his head and looked to her, flicking his tail constantly. "Do you think anyone will ever come for us?"

"What us? You're the one everyone's looking for." Alice jumped and looked to see him human next to her.

"If someone were to come I wouldn't leave you." She argued.

"He'd be your prince and rescue you." He added, looking up to the sky.

"But you woke me up." Alice protested, he glanced back to her."If someone came, I wouldn't leave you." The princess repeated.

"Thanks." He whispered, she could barely hear him.

The spent the rest of the day quietly yet together. Alfred could be talkative, but today he didn't seem to be. They returned inside and ate cold dinner. Alice wasn't sure exactly what was off about him. They cleared away their cans and Alfred was about to leave when Alice grabbed his arm and stopped him.

He turned back to her. The princess looked at her feet,"Could you stay with me again, tonight?"

"Uh, yeah. Sure." He answered.

They returned to her room and Alice quickly changed into her sleepwear while he stood outside. She pulled the ribbons from her hair, making her pigtails fall to her back. The princess turned to open the door, but caught her reflection on the way there and stopped.

It had been forever since she had looked in the mirror, her appearance had been the least of her worries for a while. She realized her nineteenth birthday passed already and she hadn't even known. No, not her nineteenth. She had been sleeping for two years before Alfred had woken her, and it had been another year since then. Her twenty-first birthday had passed and she still looked nineteen. Alfred was actually nineteen. They didn't know exact dates in the tower, but her birthday was in the spring and his was in the summer.

Alice broke away from her thoughts and opened the door. Alfred was leaning against the wall then stood in front of her. "Hey..." He trailed off.

"What?" She asked.

"Do you think we could properly kiss now?" Alfred smiled nervously, she blinked. Was this really what he was so worked up about all day? She grinned and stood on her toes to reach him.

Without any response she closed the gap between them. This was much better than the first one. He hugged her closer and she wrapped her arms around his neck, running her fingers through his hair softly. He tasted like an odd mix of coffee and chocolate with a hint of their dinner, and he was warm like usual. Odd since they didn't have any coffee or chocolate in their tower.

They eventually broke apart but Alice instantly wished they hadn't. Both of them were breathing hard and neither had broken their embrace. Alfred grinned at her and pressed his warm forehead to hers. She smiled and hugged him closer.

"I love you." He whispered just loud enough for only her to hear.

"I love you, too." The princess echoed as he kissed her again, making her warm inside and out once again.

Another week passed. Then another, then another. The weeks turned to months and the months turned to a year. Then a year turned to two.

They spent their days and nights together. Smiling at one another and laughing together and loving each other. They were soulmates, after all. But of course, everything good and simple must end one day.

Their days of laughs and nights of love in their isolated tower all ended that day when the prince arrived, ready to play his part in the fairytales.

 **If anyone is too lazy to do the math, they've been trapped (including the time she was asleep) for five years.**


	10. Broken Shields and Unwanted Rescues

**School sucks, I just have to say.**

 **Review:**

 **Clairol:**

 **Are they actually the highlight of your week?! That's so amazing and it makes me so happy at there's at least a couple people who like these trashy things I write! Thanks so much!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.**

 _Then someone did, ready to destroy the shield and slay the dragon..._

Alice awoke one summer morning with Alfred at her side. He was fast asleep, hugging her closely, her back pressed against his chest. The princess wiggled free of her dragon's grip and sat up some. The sun was shining brightly through the window. The sunlight also made Alfred's hair shine she noticed for the millionth time. Alice made the same observation just about every morning that she woke up before him.

The princess laid down again, deciding there was no reason to leave. His arm was draped over her, and she stared at the ceiling. Unexciting, she was debating on watching her dragon sleep when there was a sudden jolt. Not any small thing, it shook the whole tower and caused both of them to fall on the hard floor.

"Oww..." Alice heard him whine.

"What was that?" She grumbled, sitting up as Alfred neared the window with a look of shock. When he didn't respond she asked again,"What was it?" Alice stood and neared him and the window.

Her eyes widened at the scene. Instead of the empty world she was so used to seeing outside their shield, there were men. Not just a couple, but at least a hundred, dressed in silver armor. Someone had come after all.

The men attacked the shield once again, causing the tower to shake. Alfred hugged her tightly to steady them both. The princess hugged him back, not wanting to face the men outside. The shaking stopped and he let her go reluctantly.

Alice looked back to the army outside, a couple more attacks and the shield would break. She'd be free. They'd be free. She looked back to Alfred. He was watching her sadly.

"They came for you." He smiled sorrowfully.

"I never thought that they would." Alice murmured, remembering all the times she had thought that she had seen something on the horizon. At some point she had just stopped fantasizing and pretending and accepted that no one was coming. Then when her dragon became her lover she didn't mind the idea of being there with him forever. Really, she didn't want to rescued anymore.

But she was. After years of being trapped someone had come and she didn't want to leave. That wasn't exactly true. She did want to leave the charred tree and the tower with the broken window and the horribly perfect bedroom. She didn't want to leave him. Alice looked at him.

His golden bed hair with that one piece that stuck up from his fringe. His worried gaze that looked so different from the usual one. His bright sky blue eyes. His wide smile and happy and loud personality. She was still desperately in love with him and she couldn't leave him after all this. He had rescued her.

"I'm not leaving you." She announced sternly.

"Why not?" He looked confused at her proclamation. They were sitting across from each other on the floor of her bedroom, waiting for the shaking to stop

"I love you." The princess retorted, like it was the most obvious thing ever.

"Yeah, but they're going to let you go home, and you can marry a prince or something better than me," He paused,"I'm just a poor cursed village kid, you deserve better. Someone who can take care of you and someone who deserves you." Alice blinked in shock, did he actually think that after all this time?

"I don't want to go home, it wasn't exactly the best place for me, ever. And don't think some prince is better than you," He frowned in disagreement. "I don't think you've ever met a prince, but I have and they are stuck-up, prissy, cocky, wankers. I'll be a prize to them, not a wife." She sighed and smiled,"You always are taking care of me, I believe we met because you saved me from a falling tree in a horrible thunderstorm. And you better not think you don't deserve me. If anything, it's I who doesn't deserve you."

He didn't look convinced but another quake interrupted their conversation. There was a loud crack. When the shaking stopped they returned to the window and saw a large noticeable crack in the shield.

"We should get dressed and meet them." Alice whispered, still watching the army.

"I'm going out as a dragon." This caused her to look at him.

"Why the hell would you do that?" She glared.

"In case something happens, I need to be able to protect you." Alfred retorted.

The princess looked to the ground then outside again. She huffed and nodded. He left her alone but she knew he hadn't gone far.

Alice decided, for formality, she might as well dress in the same golden dress she had woken up in so long ago. It's what she was meant to meet the outside world in anyway. It was far too frilly and restraining. The was another crack and quake while she was changing and she almost hit her head on the wardrobe. The princess returned to Alfred. He was watching out another window nervously.

One last quake, one last crack. Then it shattered. Almost like glass, men spilling into their peaceful tower that had been so empty for so long. The princess and the dragon climbed the spiral stairs for the last time. Leaving through that broken window to the last time.

The sunlight washing over the outside seemed different than before. Maybe a little more genuine. The window faced the far side, away from the men. But that didn't stop the men from rushing around the sides and seeing them.

Alice backed into Alfred, now much taller and much more threatening in his dragon form. He curled around her loosely, his tail shielding her directly from them. But there was no need to shield her, she wasn't the target.

It happened before she could even realize it. The arrows whizzed so close she could feel their movement in her skin. His blood splattered on the golden dress and her skin and she didn't even know.

Alice only realized when men started to pull her away. Asking if she was okay, but she wasn't. They had just shot her dragon. They asked a thousand other questions, the foreign voices buzzed in her ears, only managed to reach Alice in her hysterical state.

Where was her dragon?


	11. Princes and Closed Doors

**Aww, you guys are all so worried about Alfred!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.**

 _The princess met her prince at last..._

When Alice awoke, Alfred was not at her side. She was not in her tower. In fact, she had no idea where she was. Her golden dress had splotches of red as did her hair. Her skin had extra spots along with her freckles that were scarlet.

There was a man sitting in a chair next to her. She didn't notice him at first. He was not as tall as Alfred and much more, fancy? She supposed that was the right adjective.

He had blond hair a shade lighter than her own. It was wavy and long, tied back in a loose ponytail. Perfect in every way, but for some reason she hated it. He had blue eyes, too. Not the sky blue that Alfred had. Not the ones she got lost in. More like cornflower blue eyes. Watchful, interested, Alice didn't like those either. He had stubble on his chin, too. He was dressed in nice clothes. Clothes of a noble or prince or whatever he was.

"Ah! You're awake!" He cried in an odd accent, unlike hers or Alfred's.

"Who are you?" She asked, not caring about any formalities she had

been taught. Alice sat up, quite ready to distance herself as far away as she could from this man.

"My name is Prince Francis Bonnefoy, "He took her hand against her will,"and you must the beautiful Princess Alice Kirkland," He kissed her hand, Alice pulled away,"I have rescued you from that miserable tower and horrific dragon." He introduced.

Francis. Now she had a nasty name for a nasty face.

"Where is he?" The princess asked.

"Who?" Francis raised an eyebrow.

"Alfred." She returned, searching his expression.

"Who?" He frowned. Obviously she was not the kind of princess he was expecting. Good. She didn't want to be anything for this man.

"My dragon." Alice hissed.

He looked puzzled,"I believe you are mistaken. That dragon was keeping you prisoner. I rescued you."

Alice rolled her eyes. She stood up, not even looking at him anymore. The world became hazy for a moment as she stood. "You, in no way, _rescued_ me. The curse said someone of worth and who loved me would kiss me and wake me. You, sir, are not of any _worth_. And I was awake before you arrived so you did not rescue me. Now, take me to my dragon, Francis." She commanded.

She tried to remember what had happened between the time after she had walked out with Alfred and now. No matter how hard she tried she couldn't place what had happened. And whose blood she was spotted in.

The prince watched her in confusion and interest. He didn't seem to be moving much to bring her anywhere. He in fact was not moving anything but his eyes across her. "You are quite feisty. I enjoy that in women." He purred. The princess blinked, then scowled.

"Take me to my dragon," Alice hissed, clinching her fists at his comment. She did not like him. The princess had already decided that much.

"Why do you care about the beast?" Francis frowned playfully and started to revolve around her. She tensed. Oh how she wished Alfred was here to protect her.

"I love him."

He snorted,"He's a dragon! How could you love a monster like that?" Francis neared her and caressed her cheek, he was not warm like Alfred was. "Wouldn't you rather a human to love? Like someone who has rescued you from a horrific creature."

Chills ran down her spine, she shoved away his hand. "Take me to him now, or I'll just go find him myself."

The prince sighed,"Perhaps it will give you ease to see his corpse."

Alice had started to follow him but stopped at the word corpse. "What?"

"Do you not realize whose blood that is?" Francis looked over his shoulder at her.

The princess looked down to her dress. She could almost see her forgotten memories. The blood was his.

She could see the golden dress become his golden scales. The blood splattering from his wounds. He couldn't be.

Tears began to fall, she looked back to Francis. He looked puzzled once again. "Here, I'll take you." He led her down a hall. She had no idea where she was. Alice couldn't focus on much of anything other than the fact that he couldn't be. It didn't seem like she was far from her tower, but she didn't know how long she had been out. She didn't know how long he had been- But he couldn't be.

Not Alfred. Not the only person who still loved her. Not him. With his warm sky eyes and his golden hair. Not because of her. She couldn't have killed another. Not her dragon. Not him.

They walked in silence, Alice was trying to keep her tears from overcoming her. She wasn't doing a good job. Her vision was becoming very unclear when Francis said,"He's in here. I'll leave you alone I guess."

It was a simple room. Tall ceiling and walls that were a maroon shade of red. Curtains hid the rest of the world away, making the room seem closed away. Almost making her feel trapped. He was there. Lying in the center of the empty floor, not moving.

"Al- Alfred?" She whisper barely. She almost didn't want to know if he would respond. If she didn't know then she'd never have to accept his death. She wouldn't. She couldn't. Not him.

There was a flinch. Slight and painful, but it was his. Alice ran to him and he was human once again.

There was blood all over his torso, she would have never known his shirt had been white if she hadn't seen it this morning. Tears started falling once again. He was breathing barely, she didn't even know it was there until she searched for it. "Alfred!" She fumbled toward his wounds. A simple stab wound had been hard enough for her, how could she hand this?

"I'm going _die_." A hushed voice breathed. Alice looked back to his face. It was pained, he didn't look like himself anymore. His sky colored eyes flickered over her.

"No, you're not- You'll be fine." Alice returned fiercely. Really it was more for her, he couldn't die. She tried to stop some bleeding but it barely worked. "You'll be fine..."

"Alice."

"Shut it."

"Alice!" His exclamation was really just as hushed as the previous words. The princess looked to him anyway. "It's not worth it." Her fingers fell. She knew he was right.

"I love you." Tears were falling from those blue eyes that always captured her.

If those men had taken care of him, maybe. Maybe he wouldn't be dying now. But all they saw was a monster.

"I love you, too." She whispered back barely, but both heard the words clearly.

"Princess? I'm quite interes-" The prince froze. She guessed it was an unfamiliar scene. A princess crying over the bloody dying body of a man who hadn't been there before. Quite odd.

"Francis-"

"Medics!" He shouted down the hall. The prince knelt to Alfred,"Where in the world did he come from?" The man hissed under his breath. Alice held her dragon's bloody hand with her own.

She was struggling to breathe. She was struggling to see anything. She was struggling to find the words to respond to the prince. She was struggling to live. She couldn't live without her dragon after all.

The medics whisked him away quicker than she realized. Suddenly their hands were broken and she was sitting in that empty maroon room with her prince. Alice clinched the fabric of her dress, turning more of the golden cloth scarlet. Tears fell fast, creating wet spots in the gold and on the floor.

She suddenly stood. Alice ran down the halls, doubling back and running in confusion until she saw someone with blood on their clothes. They saw her and gestured to a door. It was tall and wooden. Simple designs carved in the doorframe.

It was funny how history repeats itself. Wars happen time and time again over the same stupid reasons. The winners are praised and the losers are ruined. Men are forgiven and women are forgotten. Princesses are trapped in their towers. Dragons are killed. Princes are the rescuers.

And she's left outside a door once again.

 **You guys know I couldn't kill him, I mean come on.**


	12. Humans and Witches

**Originally this was only going to be 10 chapters but now we're up to 14. Oops. Anyone have any good USUK stories I can read? Please recommend below.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.**

 _She spent her time alone and outside a door once again..._

Alice sat in the lonely hallway. She payed no mind to the looks she was given. She only moved when the door she was sitting against opened or closed.

The princess was not allowed to see her dragon. She was told he was alive, but no matter how much she begged, cried, waited or pleaded, she could not see him.

She stayed as close as she could, sitting outside his door. She didn't leave, she knew if they were reversed he wouldn't leave. She couldn't make herself leave anyway. The only time she did was when Francis made her take a bath and change. He didn't push her to do anything else after that.

Alice stayed outside the door, she listened for some sign of her lover, but there was none. She looked up hopefully every time the door opened, hoping it would be Alfred. He would come out and laugh at her for crying over him and he would kiss her and say it was okay. They were okay.

But they weren't.

Francis came and sat next to her in the hall often. He would if she was okay and she would say no. He never talked to her the same way he did that first day. The prince seemed to know. Even if Alfred did die, she could never love him like she loved Alfred. He was more of a supportive figure. He brought food that she barely touched, he made sure she wasn't completely destroying herself. He asked who he was and what had happened in that tower. Then he left her to listen and wait some more.

The nurses would look empathetic, the doctors would pity her for sitting there. She didn't care what they thought, she just wanted Alfred back. There was one nurse, who always checked on her too. Alice never got a name and never gave one.

It had been several weeks. That one nurse walked down the hall and stopped at Alice. She didn't even notice until she looked up and saw the shadow of the nurse standing over her. "You may see him." She smiled softly. The princess wasn't sure she heard her correctly, but the nurse left before she could saw a word.

Alice stood. She stared at the door. Her gaze flickered to the brass handle. It was so simple to open but she had never had so much trouble in doing anything. Her fingers brushed the cold metal, then fell again. Why now? Was there just a dead body in there? Was she being played once again? Alice clinched the handle and pushed the door open.

He was there. But it didn't seem like him. He was paler than she had ever seem him. He wasn't warm anymore. He was alive, she could tell from his soft breathing, but he wasn't awake. He almost didn't look real. He didn't look like Alfred.

She neared him slowly,"How is he?" Alice jumped and looked to the doorway, Francis was there.

"He doesn't look the same." She whispered.

"The doctor was telling me, something about the shapeshifting is causing problems. The human part of him is keeping him alive, but the dragon part is killing him." The prince said.

"How?" Alice didn't look away from Alfred, she didn't trust him to still be there if she looked away.

"Something about the differences in humans and dragons anatomically. The location of the wounds would kill him if he was a full dragon, but as a human he's just harmed. He has to keep switching back and forth, and that's what's killing him. They don't know what to do anymore." Francis explained

"What do we do?" Alice asked.

"If we can find some way to make him fully human, then he should recover just fine. But if this keeps going he'll die." The prince sighed. She felt her stomach drop. No, that's not possible. She grabbed his hand, it was lukewarm.

"But he never said anything about breaking his curse." She risked a glance to Francis before returning her eyes to Alfred. He broke her curse but she couldn't do anything to break his.

"I'll find some magic help, I know a few sorcerers, they could help." She squeezed his hand. "Princess." Alice looked to the Prince. "I'm not going to let him die."

"Thank you." The princess whispered softly, and she was left with her dying dragon.

Alice stayed with him all the time. Sitting in a chair next to the bed, she could only sleep when she was next to him. He didn't wake. He barely moved, barely breathed, he barely looked alive anymore. So different from the lively person she knew.

Every twelve hours on the dot he'd turn back to a dragon. He seemed to be in much more pain then. Nurses and doctors would come in more while he was a dragon. Then twelve hours passed and he returned to his human form. Another week of this passed, Francis didn't visit. Alfred didn't wake.

She waited for him to wake up and smile at her. She waited for his tail to twitch. She waited for him to get better. But he didn't. Alice didn't like sleeping anymore, she was scared to wake up to a dead body. So she waited.

One day, while Alfred was human and she was watching him breath, to make sure he still was, Francis walked in with a woman. Alice didn't recognize her, she wasn't from here. She was shorter, messy curls and an ankle length dress.

"Princess, this is the sorceress I mentioned." He introduced, was he sure? This woman looked quite frazzled.

Alice was about to respond but the woman payed no mind,"Oh is this him? He looked quite bad. How long has it been?"

"How long since what?" Alice asked.

"Since he was cursed?" The woman looked like she had expected Alice to understand.

"Since he was seven." She gasped.

"Seven!? Poor child! Oh I'll fix him right up!" She cried.

Alice blinked,"Wait you can?"

The sorceress had pulled a wand from her hair, it had been keeping her messy ponytail together. Her curls fell to her back,"Of course I can! The witch who cursed him dead, I can feel the empty magic. It should be quite simple."

"She's dead? How, when?" Alice pestered.

The woman glanced at her, she had amber eyes that were slightly squinted. "I don't know, I'm not sure who she was, I can just tell by the magic. Now I need an empty room! So Prince, please escort this young woman away."

Alice blinked. She was dead? No wait- she had to leave him? "I'm not leaving him." She declared. The woman raised an eyebrow.

"If you don't leave I can't help him." Francis had walked over to her.

"She's fine, come on, Princess." He tried to push her out the door but Alice resisted. She returned to his bed side and took in his appearance. Dull blond hair and pale sick skin and closed eyes. He looked dead already. His breath was the only thing tell her he was still alive. She glanced to the sorceress.

Alice sighed softly, she brushed his hand softly but then turned away and left, Francis closing the door once again. "How long until she's done?" The princess asked.

"No idea." The man shrugged,"He'll be fine, Princess." She played with her fingers.

"I'll wait here." She returned to her spot on the floor and waited.

It was oddly quiet. There was not even any footsteps. Just the sound of her breathing. She didn't know how long she had waited. Messing with her fingers or her dress. She was still wearing that dress Francis gave her, it was light blue. She wondered what happened to the bloody gold one.

Would he still be the same? Maybe it was just the dragon part of him that loved her. Or maybe he'd forget about her. He'd forget the tower and the years they spent there. Maybe he wouldn't care anymore. He was free, he didn't have to stay with her after all.

"I'm done! Oh look alive, he's going to be fine!" She jumped, the woman was standing over her. Alice was offered a hand and she took it. The sorceress smiled at her,"Go on inside, it'll be a bit until he's awake."

The woman left and Alice returned to the room. He looked better. Not as sickly, his skin slightly tanner and his hair a little shinier than before. His eyes still closed and he breathed stronger. She smiled a little and sat down next to him. She took his hand. Then the princess fell asleep next to her lover.

When she awoke someone was squeezing her hand. She sat up some and saw Alfred. He was awake. Still laying down facing her with those blue eyes.

"You look like a mess." He whispered hoarsely.

She smiled, relieved, he wasn't dead, "So do you." Alice crawled over so she could hug him. He weakly returned the hug, but she could feel the love in it.

"I love you." He whispered into her hair.

There was no hesitation. "I love you, too."


	13. Marriage and Death

**I'm sad, I like this story but it's almost over!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.**

 _They returned to her kingdom to find the king..._

It took another two months for him to recover enough to travel. She stayed with him for most of the time, helping him around and with various things.

They sat in the room he was staying in, he was taking a nap. Alice rested her head against the bed frame, watching him from the corner of her eye.

It was odd to see him human all the time. She'd never see her dragon again. She realized this a night after the sorceress. Alfred had stayed human the whole day and night. It wasn't bad. But she'd never see her dragon again.

"What are you thinking about?" He asked. She glanced at him, he didn't even sound tired.

"Weren't you sleeping?" She smiled and rested her hand next to him.

"I can't sleep. Talk to me." He whined. Alfred rolled onto his stomach and rested his head on his hands, looking at her expectingly.

The main wounds had the arrows that stabbed his stomach and back. As a dragon, shot in the same place, that would've been his heart. Alfred had lost a lot of blood. They said he'd have those scars for the rest of his life, he joked that they were battle scars. Alice really didn't care about the scars. He was alive and safe and loved her. That's all she needed.

"What do you want to after this?" Alice decided to ask him what she had wondered for quite a while.

"After what?" He looked puzzled.

She brought her hand back to her lap and looked over at the empty wall. "After you are well enough. We should leave here, we've already overstayed Francis's welcome. He'd done too much to help us, and I don't want to worry about debt."

Alfred was silent for a while. The princess looked back to him, just to make sure he wasn't fast asleep. He had been watching her thoughtfully. "We could go back to your kingdom." He suggested.

"Why?" Alice snorted.

"Where else is there?" He questioned. "And we don't know what's happened there. If the witch is dead then anything could've happened."

He wasn't wrong, if the witch was dead, then her brothers were free, if they were still alive. Maybe the empire had fallen. Maybe her father had fallen with it. "Okay." They both looked back to each other,"Let's go back there. But I'd don't promise that we're going to stay."

"M'kay. Alice? Something else."

"Yes?"

"I can't exactly get you a ring right now but..." He trailed off, Alice raised an eyebrow,"Will you marry me?"

She blushed deeply, scanning him for any hint of a joke. There wasn't one. The princess smiled widely.

"Yes."

Another week after that passed. Alfred passed all his tests. He was fit enough to travel, but no extreme activity.

They left the next day. Her kingdom was not far, only a couple days of traveling by horse. Nothing exciting happened. Before she realized it they were crossing the border to her kingdom.

Her home. Not really, she'd count that tower as more of a home than this. They neared the large castle that had held her for much longer than the tower.

"Stop!" Someone shouted from the gates, Alice glanced at Alfred and he shrugged.

A guard rushed out from nowhere and stopped in front of them. "Wh-" He froze when he looked up to her. "P-p-princess!" He stammered,"What-? How did y-"

"May we come in?" Alice asked after she realized he wouldn't be able to make a full sentence anytime soon. He nodded fiercely. Alfred and Alice handed over their horses to the guard and went inside.

It was overcast that day, the long black out curtains were open slightly, only letting in more grey light. Alfred found her hand and held it tightly. He wasn't as warm as he used to be, but his touch was still just as comforting. They walked down the halls quietly, the servants seemed to be gone. The whole castle seemed dead. Not that it had been overly alive before.

There was the another question. Where was her father? Was he off at war? Or renforcing his laws? Or in that study? Alice squeezed his hand and started down a different path. They stopped at the study. The end of a long hall. She broke away only to open the door, but the room was empty.

They continued down the empty halls, when there was the echo of footsteps. A man carrying a tray with water and soup was the owner of the steps. He was also quite surprised to see her also but seemed to answer her questions easier than the guard at the gates.

"Is my father here?" Alice asked.

"Yes. He is sick. He has been sick for a while." The man answered.

"And?"

"He is dying, Your Highness."

Alice wasn't sure what to say,"Take me to him." They were led to her father's bedroom. Hers was just down the hall. The man left the meal and disappeared. She turned to Alfred,"I'm going to talk to him, do you want to come?"

"No."

The princess tilted her head,"Why?"

Her fiancé shrugged,"I don't think I should, I'll wait here for you." He smiled and kissed her softly goodbye.

Alice hesitated to open the door but did. She shut it behind her, leaving Alfred alone in the hall. The bedroom did not look very different from what she remembered. Her father never seemed to be in there, always in his study or off on a trip. There was a four poster bed, and there he was.

The man that sent her away and traded her and yelled at her and left her alone. She should be happy, shouldn't she? After all he had done, to see him so weak and alone, she should enjoy this, right? Alice didn't. She wasn't sad. That wasn't it. But she wasn't happy to see him like this. He seemed so much smaller now. She neared the bedside. His hair was greying, how old was he now? Alice had no idea.

He turned his head softly and saw her. His wrinkled face crinkled,"Alice," He croaked softly,"You found someone who loves you?" There was an odd emotion she'd never heard in his voice.

She thought of Alfred. The weeks she had spent outside his door. The years they spent together. "Yes."

"I knew you would." He whispered, an odd look on his face. "You're so stubborn, I knew you'd come back. I tried to stay long enough for you."

"You traded me." She returned.

"I did." The old man observed the room quietly,"I didn't know then. I didn't know how lonely I would be. War and love come from the same tree, you can't really have one without one. I was alone, all alone. No love, no friendship, nothing," He sighed knowingly,"An empire is nothing if you have no one to share it with."

"I was alone for eighteen years here." She didn't feel sorry for him. Should she?

"I know that now. If I could change then, I would. I didn't know then. I am sorry, Alice." The princess judged him, was he really?

"I don't expect you to care about me. I don't even expect you to accept my apology. I just needed you to know I regret it. Those years that I shut you away. Your brothers that I killed. I regret it all. I was blinded. I was blinded by war and hate and fear. I can see now. It is too late now, though, isn't it?" He chuckled but then it turned into a cough. She didn't try to help him. "You found someone who loves you, do you love them?"

"Yes, I love him." Alice answered, a million memories of Alfred rushed through her head.

"That's all I could ever hope for you. Never let him go. Love is so hard to find, and so easy to lose. Losing your mother killed me. I don't blame you for her either. Love him and never let him go, or you'll regret it. Share my empire with him." He coughed some more and blood splattered on his cheek.

"What do you mean, share your empire?" The princess questioned

Her father smiled at her, weak and wrinkly. "I'm dying, Alice. It's your empire now. Share it with him."

They were silent, untold words between them. "I'm sorry." He whispered. Another coughing fit. More blood.

"Goodbye." Alice said. She couldn't make herself want to help. Her father was dying and she wasn't sad. The horrible man who shut her out her life was dying and she wasn't happy.

She left, returning to the hallway. There were many nurses and doctors worriedly lingering. She stepped out of the way and they rushed past her. After all their king was dying.

Alfred was still there, watching her with a concerned look. Alice went to him, he pulled her close. "My father is dying and I'm not sad." She mumbled so only he could hear. He rested his head on hers, holding her tightly.

"Was he really your father?" Alfred whispered into her hair.

"No." They stood like that for a long moment. A doctor returned, announcing the king was dead.

She was queen now. She had an empire. No- Alice leaned against Alfred, not sad, not happy.

They had an empire.


	14. Happily Ever Afters and The Ends

**I'm very happy with how this story turned out, hope you all enjoyed reading it! This ended up being about 15 thousand words, I think When The Day Met The Night is about 35 thousand, probably 40ish after editing and stuff. Anyway, this was a lot of writing, I liked doing the fairytale kind of thing, I'm sure I'll do more of this style in the future. Thank you all for reading, following, favoriting, and reviewing!**

 **I was also thinking of maybe doing a bonus chapter like a 4.5 or something with a little of Alfred's point of view. I feel like for him being a main character he really wasn't in this a lot. It was a lot of Alice. Or maybe I could do a chapter with just the story telling part of it (the italics at the beginning of each chapter)? Tell me below if I should do one of those, or just leave it alone.**

 **Here without further ado!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia**

 _They lived happily ever after..._

"Then they lived happily ever after." The king concluded.

The princess was still wide awake despite the long story, their stories never put her to sleep, especially not that one. "Then what happened?!" She cried unsatisfied with the end.

"The princess and the dragon got married and moved into the castle." The queen had her head propped up, she was more tired from the story that the daughter. All those memories were quite exhausting.

"Then they had a little girl with blue eyes and blond hair!" The king teased, tickling the princess. She giggled and struggled in her father's hug. The queen smiled at the two and yawned loudly.

"I think you should take Mama to bed, Daddy. She's tired." The princess told her father, they had both stopped to watch her yawn.

"I guess it's everyone's bedtime." There was an "aw" from the princess. The king set his daughter down, he tucked her under the covers again and stepped back to admire his handiwork. "Perfect!" He kissed the blond child's forehead. "Goodnight!" He smiled.

The king then glanced at his wife. She was half asleep, he scooped her up and out of the chair. "What are you doing?" She asked, too tired to really argue.

"See I can still pick her up after all these years." He grinned and winked at the little girl.

"All these years? You're like thirty. Now put me down," The queen rolled her eyes, woken up some. The king set her down again.

"Goodnight, love." She kissed their daughter.

"'Night, Mama! 'Night, Daddy!" They flicked off the lights and were out the door when they heard,"Wait!"

The queen sighed and looked over at her husband,"Yeah?" He asked.

"Were you really a dragon?" She questioned curiously.

"Yep! Now, go to sleep!" Alfred smiled at her and softly waved. He shut the door, leaving them in an empty hallway.

"I told you, you shouldn't have promised a story." Alice yawned again. Alfred shrugged and picked her up again,"Oi! Put me down!" She exclaimed.

Alfred grinned and kissed her,"You're too tired to make it to our room." The queen returned the kiss, only to make him be quiet. The queen and king started down the hall to their own room.

It was far too late for a story.

 **The End.**


	15. Witches and Emeralds

**So, I'm back for one last chapter. A while ago, pokedawnheart asked about doing a chapter in Alfred's POV since this was all in Alice's POV. I was actually thinking about that before, and they just made me want to write it more. I'm sorry this took so long.**

 **I just want to say thanks to everyone who read this again. I really liked this story and it makes me so happy that there's just a few other people that loved it, too. It makes me so excited when people say that they like my stories, because I really just write them for me and I always am shocked when others like them so much. Thanks to everyone and I'm glad you could all enjoy this story with me! So here's the last little chapter, it's not much, but I liked the ending.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.**

 _The dragon was just as human as the rest of them..._

"Come on, Matt! It'll be fun!" Alfred shouted loudly, trying to drag his brother down the dirty backroad.

"No! I don't want to. Wait! Alfred!" The other boy stopped his struggling for a minute. "There's stories about a witch living back here." He whispered, Matthew was always sort of timid. Probably because Alfred was so loud in comparison, the twins really couldn't be more different personality wise. Everyone always thought that Alfred made up for Matthew's quietness. Although, they looked almost the same. Same golden hair and blue eyes, Matthew's always looked purple though.

"You know that's just a myth! They're trying to scare you!" The boy retorted, rolling his eyes.

"I don't want to, okay? I'm going home, you can go explore all you want." His twin ran away before Alfred could try and pull him back. The seven year old huffed and kicked a rock. It wouldn't be as fun without Mattie. Why'd he have to be so lame?

He glanced back down the road. It was dusty and barren, the woods surrounding it. Later down, the path in faded into the trees. Alfred looked back from where they had come. Their house was just a little past around the corner. It was getting later, but his parents would be okay if he explored a little, right? They were always saying how adventurous he was. Alfred chose the forest path and started to run down it.

He had been walking for a while, finally exhausted from running so much. The child was starting to get nervous. The woods were weirdly quiet, he didn't like it. No birds or wind or anything. It was unsettling. Plus, he was lost, too.

The road had dissolved to dust and he hadn't noticed. By the time Alfred had stopped running, he was lost among the green. Alfred really wished Mattie was with him, at least they'd be lost together. The boy jumped at the odd leaf arrangement to his left. It almost seemed like a person. He didn't feel that alone anymore, shivering even though it wasn't cold outside.

"Hello?!" He yelled into the trees. "Help me! I think I'm lost!" No response, he was starting to panic. Alfred started to pick up his pace, screaming for someone to hear him, turning around and backtracking. He was more lost than he had been before. The real panic was setting in now. Then the child backed into into a brick half fence. Alfred screamed and tripped over something, maybe a root.

He turned to look at the brick, but instead noticed the house behind it. "Whoa.." The boy mumbled, looking over it. The outside matched the brick color, and the roof and shutters were grey. It had to be at least two stories, maybe more. For a kid who has lived in a small village house his whole life, the forest house was shocking and huge to him. There was a pretty garden of strange flowers and fruits. Vines climbed the walls and the sun shined through the trees. Just a few rays hit the bricks, but it was mostly hidden in the forest's shadows. He suddenly realized something. If there was a house here, then someone probably lived here.

Alfred climbed the wall and fell onto the other side. He started sprinting to the house, shouting at it. The door opened before he even made it to the porch. A woman stood there, she was pretty, long whitish blond hair and piercing purple eyes. "A child?" She asked, she looked innocently curious. Alfred didn't know that she wasn't, not yet.

"I'm lost! Can you help me? I can't see anything but the trees." He started to near her, but suddenly lost the feeling in his limbs. Alfred struggled, but he was frozen in his place. He started to cry in his panic.

"You shouldn't run around places you don't know, little boy," She smiled, almost sweetly, but he could tell it was fake now. Too late for him. "Hasn't anyone told you? _Witches_ roam these woods." Alfred started yelling, still crying and still frozen. "And I'm one of them."

The pain was dull at first, not even noticeable in his mind. But it got stronger, burning. Alfred felt like he was burning, he wasn't cold anymore. He was sobbing, begging for her to stop as she began speaking. "For punishment of betraying my privacy, you shall be cursed as a dragon. For half a day you must be human, and the other half you must be dragon. This should show you, child, don't wander these woods." The pain became so strong, his vision was dotted until he woke up.

Alfred jerked awake from the nightmare. Not fully a nightmare, more like bad memories. It was all true. It was about dawn, still snowing, he could tell from the balcony opening. Alfred rubbed his eyes, trying to forget the past memories. The floor he slept on was extra hard, the witch could've at least put another bed in here before locking him away with her.

 _Her._ That's what he usually called the sleeping girl downstairs. Alfred stood from the spot on the floor and stretched. He was human at the moment, but Alfred checked anyway. Sometimes he woke up and he didn't know what he was, those were the scariest mornings.

He could go and fly around some, wake himself up a little, or he could go check on her. He decided on the latter, she was always his first priority, and left his room. He didn't know why he had to protect her, but he knew he had to. Something told him. It was like his dragon instinct to collect shiny things. She wasn't shiny, but she was beautiful, if that counted.

Alfred walked down the stairs in silence, hearing the creaking of each step. He reached her room and opened the door barely. Just in case she was awake. She wasn't. She never was, the mystery girl.

Alfred stood in the doorway and surveyed the room. It was getting dusty, he guessed it would after two years of being untouched. He finally allowed himself to look at her.

She was pretty, peacefully sleeping there. Well, it wasn't really sleep, but he felt better if he pretended that's what it was. She had blond hair that was placed around her perfectly and a golden dress ironically. Alfred wondered what color her eyes were. He'd never know.

When someone came for her, he'd be killed. That's what the curse said. Alfred didn't want to die, but he wouldn't leave her, even if he could escape the shield. In the beginning he did. He wanted to leave so badly, he tried so hard to break it, but in the end it all failed anyway. Then Alfred did what he didn't expect.

He fell in love with her.

He didn't even know her name, it was stupid and crazy. But after two years of protecting her in this castle, Alfred fell in love. How could he not?

And maybe he wished she would wake and he could talk and laugh and do something than watch her suffer. He wondered what she looked like awake, _alive_ , instead of this sorry state she was in. He wondered what color her eyes were.

It was snowing outside, but he wasn't cold. Alfred hadn't been cold since he was seven. Always burning, the pain had lessened slightly over the years, or maybe he just had become immune to it.

Alfred left the room. He didn't like looking at her, it made him uneasy. He wished she'd wake up. Not just because he loved her, but because he didn't want her suffering. Was she? The witch had a talent for making her curses hurt. Was her curse as horrible as his? He had been burning since he was seven. Was she?

The dragon-human sat in the kitchen eating a can of cold peas. The food here really was amazing. Alfred played with his fork.

He could wake her up.

No.

He couldn't wake her up, that's not what was supposed to happen. There's going to be a prince and and he's going to die and she'll be happy somewhere else. Alfred didn't even meet the standards of the curse. He had to love her and deserve her and basically be her soulmate. There's only one soulmate in the world for everyone, and there's no way he could be hers.

There's no way he was that lucky. This argument with himself was becoming more and more frequent.

Yet even though he argued and debated and fought with himself, every time Alfred saw her sleeping there, he wanted kiss her. Just to try, just to see.

Maybe this hopeless love he had for her was something more. Or maybe it wasn't. At least he'd know then.

He couldn't wake her up.

If he tried and she didn't wake up, would that harm anyone? Then he'd know if this love meant something or not.

He could just try.

Alfred stood and abandoned his can, he returned to her room. She hadn't moved. She never moved. He neared her wearily, he was going to do this, he was going to kiss her. This would be his first kiss, would it be hers?

Alfred took a deep breath and rest his hand on her cheek, tilting her head slightly. He lowered his lips to hers and kissed her. It was nice, for her being unconscious. After a while, Alfred broke away. For some reason he was disappointed she didn't wake. He had wished they could be more than just the dragon and the princess.

Then she moved more than he had ever seen her before, turning her head in his hand and he ran.

Completely bolting from the room, shutting the door on his way out and sprinting up the stairs to his room. Then Alfred ran out the balcony and transformed into his dragon form. He flew up the the spiral roof of the tower and curled up there. It wasn't cold despite the white world made of snow. The roof was fairly comfortable, gave him someplace he could get away. Out here he could forget about her, usually.

How did he convince himself to do that?! She woke up! Did that mean his love meant something? But now she's awake! This was horrible!

He couldn't meet her. He decided that he could in no way ever meet her. She'd freak out. He's a dragon! This wasn't any better than before.

Time passed slower than it had before. Alfred snuck downstairs every night to get food and stayed human during the night. Weird how he used to do the opposite. He spent a lot of time on the roof, it was the farthest he could be from her. Then she started to come outside.

It was still snowy when he first saw her awake. She was on the ground and staring at him in shock, in horror. Alfred knew that look too well. She was bleeding too. He wished he could just fly down there to her and patch her up. But that wasn't an option. Alfred returned his gaze to the sky, trying to forget her below.

After that she kept coming out. Sometimes he'd watch her, she seemed more at ease now. Almost peaceful. Not trapped under a sleeping spell, but still trapped here with him. He wished he could go sit next to her down there.

Alfred wondered if she hated him. Maybe she hated dragons, or hated the fact she was awake now. Maybe she just wanted to be rescued by her prince. If he had left her alone it would've be fine. He wouldn't ruin her fairytale anymore. He would ignore her and his speeding heart, the warmth he felt finally that wasn't from the burning, but instead his love for her.

The winter finally gave away to the spring. Alfred still felt like he was burning, despite the weather. Rain had been more frequent lately, too. Lightning was getting close to the tower. It was a extra bad rainstorm. Alfred was watching from the balcony.

The lightning hit that tree and before he knew it, he had dived down to catch it. If he hadn't it would've hit the tower. It would've killed her, and he couldn't let that happen. He loved her after all.

The tree stabbed him, he couldn't fly away, he was grounded. She'd find him. But the world was getting dark. He couldn't focus between the blood and the numbness and the burning.

When he awoke again, she was there.

He saw her watching him, the wind playing with her hair and the grass beginning to grow back from the frost. Her hair was blond and long now, tied up in pigtails with innocent ribbon that were tied in innocent bows.

She looked so confused, puzzled, but fear was not in her eyes. No fear, she said silently, she was not scared of him. Emeralds.

Her eyes were green.


End file.
